The Premier League has its rights up for grabs, and all four major broadcast networks could submit bids for the property. Sports Business Journal’s John Ourand expects FOX, ESPN, and CBS to turn bids in alongside NBC next month.
The Nov. 8 deadline to submit bids is fast approaching as the league prepares to enter uncharted territory for its American broadcast arm. Ourand also reports that the Premier League could split their U.S. package, a la the NHL, for the first time.
The NHL did the same thing in its latest media rights deal with ESPN as the main affiliate and Turner as the secondary media arm.
Ourand didn’t land on a specific asking price for the soccer league’s rights.
“NBC currently pays more than $150 million per season as part of a six-year deal signed in 2015,” Ourand wrote in the article. “Considering the amount of interest, that fee is likely to double — and possibly go higher. NBC Sports wants to remain the sole U.S. rightsholder for Premier League, which has been a big driver of its Peacock streaming service.”
ESPN has expanded their relationship with Spain’s top soccer league, La Liga, over the past six months and have a clear interest in the world game.
“We love the game of soccer,” ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro said at last week’s CAA World Congress of Sports. “We love it on linear, but probably love it even more for direct-to-consumer. Absolutely we are interested in more soccer content, and we are looking at it right now.”
Despite those comments, Ourand noted earlier in his article that Fox looks to be taking over UEFA EURO Championship rights from ESPN. They haven’t signed a new deal to make it official, but the property would air on the FOX family of networks in 2024 and 2028.